GAME RECAP: Mets Beat Phillies 7-2
A literal banner day for the Mets -- they raised their 2015
National League pennant before the game -- turned into a subdued 7-2 win over
the Phillies on Friday when starting pitcher Jacob
deGrom left
due to a right lat injury. The afternoon was no more enjoyable for the
Phillies, who fell to 0-4 for the first time in a decade. Before departing as a
medical precaution, deGrom contributed six effective innings despite reduced
velocity. The Mets, in turn, gave him a lead on sixth-inning RBI hits from Neil
Walker and Michael
Conforto against
Phillies starter Jerad
Eickhoff. Walker singled home another run an inning
later, and Conforto singled home two more. "It's a good start," Mets
third baseman David
Wright said.
"Hopefully there's a lot more to come." The Mets' seventh-inning
rally constituted a third bullpen meltdown in four games for the Phillies,
whose 12.66 relief ERA ranks last in baseball. "We just need to get
something going," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "I need to
keep everybody positive and not get down on themselves. Everybody is trying so
hard."
PHILS PHACTS:
- Eickhoff
pitched relatively well, but the
Phillies' bullpen cannot stop the bleeding. After Dalier Hinojosa and Daniel Stumpf worked out of a jam in the sixth,
left-hander James Russell allowed four runs in the seventh
to put the game out of reach. The Phillies' bullpen has allowed 15 earned
runs in 10 2/3 innings this season. "We're going to continue to try
to find out," said Mackanin, asked if he has the personnel in the
bullpen to pitch effectively.
- There are many
reasons the Phillies are 0-4, but one of them is the offense. They have
scored more than two runs just once in four games. They are hitting .120
(3-for-25) with runners in scoring position, and they did themselves no
favors Friday when Cesar Hernandez forgot the infield fly rule,
turning a potential rally into an inning-ending double play in the eighth.
"That was unacceptable," Mackanin said. "You can't excuse
that. He should know better. He's an infielder."
- "You shouldn't have to. In high school you should know that." -- Mackanin, on if the infield fly rule is
taught during Spring Training.
- Phillies
outfielders are hitting a combined .116 (5-for-43) with one double, one
home run and two RBIs, which is why Mackanin told Darin Ruf to begin taking fly balls in left
field during batting practice. The Phillies pulled the plug on Ruf as an
outfielder in Spring Training. "Although it's not according to plan,
we need some bats with some power," Mackanin said. "I don't
think that was even a thought," Ruf said of working out in left.
"Now it is."
NEXT
GAME:
Phillies fans get their first look at
hard-throwing right-hander Vincent Velasquez -- the key piece of the Ken Giles trade with Houston -- in Saturday night's game against the Mets at Citi
Field. Velasquez threw the ball well in the spring, earning the No. 5 job in
the rotation over left-hander Adam Morgan.
PHILS PHACTS:
Wrong Kind Of Hit – Phillies
third baseman Maikel
Franco had
his left elbow wrapped up Friday morning at Citi Field. But at least he had a
bat in his hands and was headed to the batting cage to hit. "I'm
sore," Franco said. "But I'll be fine." Franco got hit with a
92-mph fastball just below the elbow in the ninth inning Thursday afternoon
against the Reds at Great American Ball Park. He was not in the Phillies'
lineup for Friday's game against the Mets, but Phillies manager Pete Mackanin
said Franco was available to pinch-hit and is expected to be in the lineup
Saturday. "It's not a big deal," Mackanin said. That should be a
relief for the Phillies, who badly need Franco's bat in the lineup. Franco hit
.300 (3-for-10) with one double, one home run, two RBIs, two walks and two
strikeouts in three games against the Reds this week. Andres Blanco started at third base Friday. He hit
fifth.
A Solid Start – All
things considered, the Phillies' rotation has been the team's lone bright spot
this season. Right-hander Jerad
Eickhoff allowed
three runs (two earned) in five-plus innings Friday afternoon in a 7-2 loss to the Mets at Citi Field. "He doesn't look
as sharp as I've seen him," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "But
he still only gave up two earned runs, which is fine." Following a spring
that began with a broken right thumb, Eickhoff pitched better than perhaps
expected. The Phillies will take it. Their starters have a 3.74 ERA in four
games, but because of a poor bullpen and a struggling offense, the team is 0-4
for the first time since 2006. The Phillies need Vince
Velasquez to
pitch well Saturday night to avoid their first 0-5 start since 1934. Eickhoff
struggled early, throwing 50 pitches in his first two innings. He hit Michael
Conforto with a pitch to start the second and loaded the
bases with no outs. Freddy
Galvis dropped
an easy catch at second on a potential double-play ball, putting runners at
first and second. Eickhoff then walked Travis
d'Arnaud to
load the bases. But Eickhoff battled. He got Jacob
deGrom to
ground into a fielder's choice as Conforto scored to make it 1-0. But Curtis
Granderson popped
out and David
Wright grounded
out to end the inning. Eickhoff threw just 28 pitches over his next three
innings, retiring 12 of 13 batters in one stretch. But a double from Lucas
Duda, a single from Neil
Walker and
a Conforto double gave the Mets a 3-1 lead and ended Eickhoff's night. Eickhoff
left the game encouraged that he is close to where he was last season, when he
had a 2.65 ERA in eight starts as a rookie. "Yeah, I think so,"
Eickhoff said. "I threw a bullpen [session earlier this week] in
Cincinnati. There were some pitches there where it was like, 'OK, that's it,
that's where I need to be.' I think I threw some out there today. It's just I
couldn't find it more than I'd like to, so it was kind of frustrating. But I'm
happy to get through it and be healthy on the backside." The bullpen is
not healthy. It allowed four runs in three innings. It has a 12.66 ERA (15
earned runs in 10 2/3 innings). "Our starters have done a really good job
up to this point," Mackanin said. "That's what we were trying to go
for up to this point. It's been working very well. We're not the best-hitting
team in the league, but we're certainly better than what we're showing. We just
need to get something going. I need to keep everybody positive and not get down
on themselves. Everybody is trying so hard."
That Was Fundamentally Wrong – Manager
Pete Mackanin emphasized the fundamentals this spring because he knew the
Phillies have little margin for error. But he never expected to need a
refresher course on the infield fly rule four games into the season. Cesar
Hernandez forgot
about the rule Friday, ending a potential rally in the eighth inning of a 7-2 loss to the Mets at Citi Field. The Phillies are 0-4
for the first time since 2006. They need to win Saturday to avoid their first
0-5 start since 1934. "That was unacceptable," Mackanin said.
"You can't excuse that. He should know better. He's an infielder." The
Phillies had Hernandez on first and Freddy
Galvis on
second with one out when Odubel
Herrera hit
a popup in the infield, just to the left of the pitcher's mound. Mets third
baseman David
Wright moved
underneath the ball, but the wind blew it behind him. No matter, the infield
fly rule had been called. But Hernandez ran to second the moment the ball hit
the ground. Wright threw to Mets first baseman Lucas
Duda, who threw to shortstop Asdrubal
Cabrera, who tagged Hernandez for the inning-ending
double play. "I did not see the umpire call the infield fly,"
Hernandez said through the Phillies' translator. "I was trying to listen
to my first-base coach, but couldn't hear a thing because it was so loud. When
the ball hit the ground, I reacted to it. However, there are no excuses. I am
an infielder. I know the rules. I take full responsibility for it. It won't
happen again." "Freddy didn't move," Mackanin said. "He
knew [not to run]." Asked if the Phillies reteach the infield fly rule in
Spring Training, Mackanin said, "You shouldn't have to. In high school you
should know that." Of course, this is not to say the Phillies would have
overcome a five-run deficit, but they need every bit of help they can get. They
have scored more than two runs just once in four games this season. They are
hitting .120 (3-for-25) with runners in scoring position. The Phillies need
offense so badly they just told Darin
Ruf to
begin to take fly balls in left field during batting practice. The Phillies
essentially pulled the plug on Ruf as an outfielder in Spring Training because
they said they valued defense over offense in the outfield. But Phillies
outfielders are a hitting combined .116 (5-for-43) with one double, one home
run and two RBIs. "Although it's not according to plan, we need some bats with
some power," Mackanin said. "I don't think that was even a
thought," Ruf said. "Now it is."
Minor Talents – Without
a doubt, low Class A Greenville had the most talented Minor League club at the
end of 2015. Scouts who saw the Red Sox's South Atlantic League affiliate in
the second half laughed about how loaded the Drive's roster was. After signing
for $31.5 million (and costing Boston a matching penalty for exceeding its
international bonus pool) in March, second baseman Yoan Moncada lived up to his
"Robinson
Cano with
more speed" comparisons and hit .310/.415/.500 with 45 steals in his final
56 games. Third baseman Rafael Devers ranked second in the SAL in doubles (38)
and total bases (208) as an 18-year-old. Shortstop Javier Guerra flashed Gold
Glove potential and slammed 15 homers. While third baseman Michael Chavis and
right-hander Michael Kopech had their ups and downs -- Chavis had
swing-and-miss issues, Kopech got suspended for 50 games after testing positive
for a banned stimulant -- they both showed the upside that made them
first-round picks in 2014. Outfielder Andrew Benintendi, the No. 7 overall
choice in 2015, arrived in Greenville in August and batted .351/.430/.581 in 19
games. Precocious righty Anderson Espinoza, who draws Pedro Martinez parallels,
made a cameo in the final series at age 17. Even with the Red Sox breaking up
the gang to start the 2016 season, they've still assembled the most impressive
Minor League roster again, this time at high Class A Salem. No club has three
players ranked higher on MLBPipeline.com's Top 100 Prospects than Moncada (No. 6), Devers (No. 16)
and Benintendi (No. 24). Guerra (No. 57) went to the Padres in the Craig Kimbrel trade in November, but Espinoza (No.
38), Kopech (currently sidelined after breaking his pitching hand in an
altercation with a teammate during Spring Training) and Chavis could move up to
the Carolina League later in the year. Salem also features several interesting
sleepers in right-hander Travis Lakins, middle infielder Mauricio Dubon and
first baseman Nick Longhi. After Salem, these are the best prospect rosters in
the Minors: 8. Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Phillies):
All three of the IronPigs' Top 100 Prospects were acquired via trade last year
by the rebuilding Phillies. Right-hander Jake Thompson (No. 54) and outfielder Nick Williams
(No. 64) came from the Rangers in July's Cole Hamels deal, while righty Mark Appel (No. 69)
-- the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 Draft -- was part of the package the
Astros gave up for Ken Giles in December. Catcher Andrew Knapp was
one of the Minors' hottest hitters after the All-Star break last year, batting
.370/.437/.698 with 11 homers in 42 Double-A games. 9.
Double-A Reading Fightin Phils (Phillies): Philadelphia leads all
organizations with seven Top 100 Prospects, so it's not surprising that the
Phils are the only one with multiple affiliates on this list. J.P. Crawford
(No. 4) is an elite shortstop prospect, catcher Jorge Alfaro (No. 95) is
another piece from the Hamels trade and outfielder Roman Quinn (No. 98) is one
of the fastest players in the Minors. Potential mid-rotation right-hander
Ricardo Pinto has two plus pitches in his fastball and changeup.
Home Opener Festivities Scheduled – The
Mets celebrated their National League championship Friday afternoon with a
lengthy pregame ceremony at Citi Field. The Phillies will have their own
festivities Monday at their home opener at Citizens Bank Park. There are a
limited number of tickets available at phillies.com/tickets or at the first-base ticket windows at
the ballpark. Here are some the highlights of the day's timeline: Noon ET --
Block party begins on Citizens Bank Way. 12:35 p.m. -- Gates open. Fans receive
a commemorative cap. 12:43 p.m. -- Phillies take batting practice. 2:13 p.m. --
The Phillies begin their walk into the ballpark from 10th Street, just outside
center field. 2:22 p.m. -- The Phillies enter the park. 2:50 p.m. -- Kane
Kalas, son of Harry Kalas, sings the national anthem. 2:53 p.m. -- The United
States Navy Parachute Team, the Leap Frogs, parachute onto the field delivering
the first balls. 3 p.m. -- Philadelphia police officer Jesse Hartnett, 33,
throws out a first pitch. Hartnett was shot three times while on duty.
President Obama called him a hero in his last State of the Union Address. 3:05
p.m. -- First pitch.
All About Debuts - It's hard to believe but the first victory at Ebbets Field in 1913 was not by the Brookyln Dodgers, that honor belongs to the Phillies. Ted Savage and Frank Torre (Joe's Brothers) made their Phillies debuts on this day in 1962 in a decade that held a lot of promise but produced few results. However, the team's record at the end of the year doesn't mean their weren't great performances that of Steve "bedrock" Bedrosian who would go on to win the Cy Young Award two years after debuting with the Phillies in 1986. The next decade saw Tyler Green playing his part in an amazing season in 1993.
THE BEGINNING:
The
Phillies are currently 0-4 this season putting them on pace to meet most
preseason predictions. The Phillies finished the spring exceeding most
expectations compiling a record of 15-11-3 (18-11-3 if you include the
exhibition games against Reading and the University of Tampa). All time, the
Phillies are 18-18-0 on this day. I expect the Phillies to finish in the bottom
half of the division but not last in the NL East by finishing the season with a
77-85 record. Let the rebuild begin!
No comments:
Post a Comment